Slow Down There 'Pardner, Keep Your Shirts On

Is this really what we want to see in front of us at an F1 race in June? Lets hope this guy gets a COME AND RACE IT™ shirt!Many in the motorsports industry were quite surprised when the FIA World Motor Sport Council established the preliminary 2012 calendar a few months ago and set the Inaugural Austin F1 race date for June 17th, 2012. If you were to ask any Austinite about holding a major event outdoors in the summer, they would have just about died laughing. Clearly, the WMSC and other primarily European F1 decision makers didn't quite understand the gravity of the heat in Texas, and what it would mean to the many international travelers whom would be leaving 21º C (70º F) average highs in Europe, would be very surprised with Austin's average of 33º C (91º F) for the month of June.

We expressed our same concern when we first heard about the June race date, but didn't bring it up, expecting it to be changed later in November, when the official 2012 calendar is set.  Well as Autosport is reporting today, Bernie Eccelstone has sent out a message to the teams about modifying the calendar for the 2012 season and is expected to push for Austin to be moved to November, just before the Brazilian GP.

This is very welcome news from our point of view and also makes a lot more sense logistically. Granted, the Canadian GP in Montreal is in early June and holding the USGP just back-to-back is logical. However, this would force the teams to either drive from Montreal or pack up and fly to Austin. 

F1 car being loaded on DHL plane for transportTransporting the teams is a costly and logistically complex operation, employing many people dedicated just to move the teams around the world. Thankfully, the F1 fleet of DHL planes on their way to Brazil in November, stop over at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) for a layover.  It's no coincidence that COTA picked a parcel of land so close to the airport here in Austin, whereby having the F1 fleet fly through Austin would be cost effective and efficient.  Things just keep falling into place, huh?

So what does this potential calendar change to late fall really mean?

1) It will be significantly cooler and more enjoyable for you to walk around the track, explore the various events at Circuit of The Americas and in downtown Austin, and allow you to focus on having fun in our fine city; not spend it hopping from shade spots to shade spots, searching for water, misters and A/C.

2) This will allow COTA to meet more of the deadlines with ease and ensure that the facility is at its peak operational capability when the teams arrive early the week before the F1 race.

3) As our friend John Maher at the Austin American-Statesman reported in April, the University of Texas at Austin (UT) stated it would consider moving a 2012 Longhorns football (American) game if it conflicts with the F1 race in Austin. A reminder that each UT Longhorns football game draws a crowd average of 100,000. Also, the F1 calendar is set prior to NCAA football schedules, which would prevent logistical change of schedule nightmares. More great news, unless of course, you were hoping to double book your trip here to see F1 and some great Texas football.

4) Ozone levels are lower in the fall than in the summer and will have less environmental impact. As discussed in the City of Austin's agreement with CELOC (the organizing entity for Circuit of the Americas to receive state funds), the Central Texas ozone season is April 1 - October 31. Therefore, a November race would complement environmental initiatives established by Council Members Chris Riley and Mike Martinez.

And to keep the ball rolling, Austin businesses in cooperation with the Austin Chamber of Commerce are working to get Austin Bergstrom International Airport (ABIA) to accomodatedirect international flights instead of going through Dallas and Houston.  This of course means less layovers for travelers and a more internationally friendly atmosphere, so lets hope this happens as well!

Update

on 2011-07-28 21:37 by Kevin Olsen

OFFICIAL UPDATE

After calling attention to the Autosport article, we spoke with COTA and they have expressed the following:

"Until such time as we receive an official announcement regarding changes to the schedule, we are proceeding as planned toward the June 17, 2012 date."

As noted in the original article, we support and predict numerous advantages of an Austin F1 race date that falls later in the 2012 season. We will, of course, continue to support COTA's moves to stay on track for a June 2012 inaugural race!

Update

on 2011-08-02 06:47 by Kevin Olsen

UPDATE #2

Autosport is reporting that the teams have not agreed to the revised calendar for the 2012 season citing "logistical nightmares" for the end of the season.  We sure hope that this can be solved and still keep the USGP in the fall timeframe, but ultimately the teams have some very real concerns about moving their staff and equipment from Austin to Brazil in just one week.

Would You Tolerate a 'Day of Rage' To See A Race?

While last Friday's announcement of the 2012 schedule caught everyone by surprise, we reacted quickly by focusing on the 2012 Formula 1 United States Grand Prix and the June 17th date for the race.  Since the news has settled down a bit and I've had some time to go back and look a little closer, I think the issue of the 2011 Bahrain Grand Prix needs to be explained a bit.

Citizens rally in protest of the Kingdom of Bahrain. Source LA Times

'A Day of Rage'

With the announcement the Bahrain Grand Prix being reinstated on the 2011 calendar (it was canceled earlier this year), protesters and human rights groups in Bahrain are calling for a 'Day of Rage' to counter the decision by the Kingdom of Bahrain and the FIA. 

As the FIA World Motor Sports Council announced on Friday, the 2011 Bahrain Grand Prix is now back on the calendar this year and set for October 30th.  In order to make room, the Indian Grand Prix has now been pushed back to December 11th following the Brazilian Grand Prix over the U.S. Thanksgiving weekend.  Not only does that leave a short 13 weeks break period between the 2011 and 2012 season, it also means that Bahrain will be 19 weeks apart from its 2012 position at the beginning of the next race season.

According to the press release, FIA Vice President Carlos Gracia spent May 31st in Bahrain to assess the situation and visit with officials from various Ministries, Circuit officials and a representative from the National Institute of Human Rights.   All of these reassurances however, are not enough to truly shed some honest light on the situation.

One Day On-Site Inspection Enough?

Bernie Eccelstone talks with Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, who was the main advocate for building the Bahrain International Circuit to host Formula 1. Source Yahoo NewsFirst, I have to question the thoroughness of such an on-site visit.  Could this on-site visit that lasted just one day really be enough to determine the appropriateness of the race?  An F1 race is no small impact on a city, on the contrary, officials from FIA and Bahrain proclaim that the impact to the economy is nearly $500 million dollars.  With over 100,000 people attending the race, the presence of F1 will be nearly impossible to ignore, and for the citizens of Bahrain, an easy target of criticism and anger as their brothers and sisters are standing up for their rights against the oppressive regime.

Now it would be a mistake to assume that politics and F1 are independent.  After all, business and politics are closely intertwined with F1.  A similar problem faced Formula 1 for the 1985 South Afrian Grand Prix, when several teams protested the GP due to the existence of apartheid in that country.  Following this race, F1 did not return until 1992 following the end of of the policy in 1991.  But the remains of the discussion and lingering attitude of the ignorant Formula 1 policy still tarnishes the return of Formula 1 to South Africa.

Reactions From Citizens, Drivers and Teams

Since the announcement, several people have come out and declared their disapproval of the decision.  F1 has been warned by Nabeel Rajab, the president of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights, that protesters are calling for a 'Day of Rage' to protest the reinstated grand prix (see Planet F1). 

Red Bull Racing Team Driver Mark WebberFrom the driver's perspective, one of the most vocal advocates for a more sensitive approach to Bahrain has been Red Bull Driver Mark Webber, and with a tweet-heard-around-the-world from his official twitter account @aussiegrit, he said "When people in a country are being hurt, the issues are bigger than sport. Let's hope the right decision is made..."  Clearly, Mark has a good point...

Red Bull Racing released a statement on their website saying "We will go through the correct channels and discuss this decision within the appropriate forum with the other F1 teams and our fellow FOTA members."  It's expected that the Formula One Teams Association (FOTA) will be meeting again soon to discuss their position on the decision to return to Bahrain.  This may be the early warnings of a possible rebellious decision to not participate, similar to the threats by Ligier and Renault preceding the 1985 South African Grand Prix.  One of the major concerns that a team would likely endure is the ability to get insurance to take the team and it's assets and employees to the race.  This would likely be extremely expensive given the current situation and could prohibit the teams, especially lower budget teams, to travel to Bahrain.

Fans and non-fans are speaking their mind as well.  Even before the announcement of the schedule by the FIA, the online petition giant AVAAZ.org was well underway to expanding their plee to help stop F1 going back to Bahrain.  Their petition has reached nearly 450,000 signatures in just 72 hours, and continues to grow steadily.  This kind of pressure is hard to ignore and if it continues, will be a highly effective tool at reaching the world's media.

Keeping It In Perspective

Is a human life worth the sponsorship money and global exposure of the sport?  Clearly not; this is the extreme case but the sensitivity of the situation should be handled with extreme care.  Formula 1 does not want to have blood on it's hands should protests about the sport turn violent and result in more bloodshed.  This would forever tarnish the relationship of the sport with Bahrain, and potentially interfere with Middle-East relations with Western Countries  (the last thing anyone wants right now).

No different than the earlier season decision to postpone the race until later in 2011, it's still too early to hold another race in Bahrain.  Formula One should respectfully decline the invitation to return.  If the teams are unwilling to spend the money to travel to Bahrain and see the race, are regular citizens going to risk getting caught up in civil unrest to attend the emotionally-charged and debated race?  We need to keep things in perspective; this is, after all, a sport. It's not our place to get between the citizens of Bahrain and their Government.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Start Your Engines...in 380 Days!

In just 380 days the construction site behind me will host the 2012 Formula 1 United States Grand Prix.

2012 Calendar Announcement from The Austin Grand Prix on Vimeo.

This news comes from the FIA World Motorsport Council, who met today in Barcelona, Spain and confirmed the 2012 Formula 1 Calendar. The F1USGP is officially set for June 17th, 2012; just 380 days from today.  Though there are many construction and logistical hurdles to be cleared, and the viability of the track depends on a pre-race inspection, it looks like work at the track will continue to progress full-speed ahead in order to meet the FIA's deadline.

In addition to setting the 2012 calendar, the WMSC voted unanimously to hold the Bahrain GP on Oct 30th this year, following an on site visit with government officials and the FIA Vice President. If you recall, this year's Bahrain GP was set for March 13, but canceled on February 21 due to political unrest in the country. According to the FIA statement, the intention of reinstating this year's race in Bahrain is to use the GP to unite the people of Bahrain, but there are still large challenges to overcome due to the political and humanitarian state there. With this announcement, there has been loud outcry from teams, drivers and F1 fans worldwide who do not agree with this decision.

The Statesman also shared that next Tuesday the Austin City Council will meet with the COTA team to discuss enrolling the City as the "local sponsoring entity" in order to support the Major Events Trust Fund.  Despite rumors and speculation by naysayers, the METF is designed to be a self-sustaining fund that is fueled by increased tax revenues from food, drink, travel and hotel sources in conjunction with major events. Thus, the Austin City Council would play a passive role in this sponsor scenario, and according to Richard Suttle, COTA's lawyer, the city will not be out of pocket for the "rolling loan" needed to kick-start the METF. You can read more at The Statesman.

Well it's no surprise that we're extremely excited about this announcement. We set up a Facebook Event: Formula One Grand Prix of the United States, so be sure to join the event and socialize with us and other fans. We'll be posting information on tickets (the #1 question today!) as soon as it is available, because we want you to join us in Austin in 2012!

You can also sign up for our newsletter for ticket information and to stay up to date on the latest news from Austin!

More detailed investigations into the effect of the Bahrain schedule addition and the City Council/METF meeting next Tuesday will follow.

View from Turn 1 - Circuit of the Americas - Picture taken April 14, 2011 - All Rights Reserved by Austin Grand Prix

An Epic Day in Austin, Texas

260 days. That is how long curious Austinites, die-hard F1 fans and everyone in between had to wait since the first F1 USGP Press Conference in July 2010 and this week's coming out party in Austin, Texas. In Tavo's defense, to say they have been busy would be an understatement.

We arrived at the Palmer Events Center on a typical April afternoon in Austin: 80' F (27' C), sunny with a few clouds in the sky, and so many people frolicking about in the neighboring Zilker Park, you begin to wonder if anyone works a typical 9-5 job in this town. As evidenced throughout Austin's cohesive, collaborative, laid-back yet get-down-to-business vibe, we passed by the sunny fun-loving people in the park and walked into the Palmer Events Center, where we were transported to a high tech press conference with a platform for innovation and excitement, and some cool backdrops. The stage was bordered with two giant screens looping some new and some familiar snapshots of Austin; the Williams F1 car served as a focal point and photo op; and about 100 media and invited parties began to fill the room.

We mingled, ran into our friend USF2000 Driver Rodrigo Sanchez, met a few new folks and took our seats behind the "Reserved Row," not knowing who would join us, but impressed when we were joined by Del Valle School Board President Richard Vasquez, Austin City Manager Marc Off, Texas Rep. Eddie Rodriguez, Texas Sen. Kirk Watson, Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell (hard to see from this angle) and Council member Mike Martinez.

SPEED TV's iconic Bob Varsha welcomed everyone and noted that he had visited the construction site and was "impressed with what was being accomplished at the track site." Before introducing the founding team on stage, Red McCombs, Tavo Hellmund and Bobby Epstein, he also shared his newfound love for the city of Austin, and shared our sentiments that it is an active and entertaining town supported by the welcoming and fun-loving people of Austin.

You may recall that McCombs and Epstein were announced as the major financial backers at July's press conference and Tavo is the ring leader in this entire project. McCombs quickly took over and before announcing first order of business, the naming of the track, he reminded people of the scale and magnitude of this project, equating it to "a SuperBowl every year" for the city of Austin. There has been so much buzz around this press conference in the past week, including speculation about what was going to be announced, that we were confident a title sponsor would be named, thereby revealing something of the sort: "The AT&T Williams Momentum Park." That was my calculated guess because AT&T is headquarted in Texas and has strong business and historical ties to central Texas, that Williams F1 car keeps popping up, and Momentum Park was a name that was referenced via some online research.

Alas, McCombs, Epstein and Tavo revealed the track as "Circuit of the Americas - Home of the World Championships, United States," or "COTA" for short. I've heard some mixed reviews of the name, but the thought behind Circuit of the Americas was to tie in the United States with Canada, South and Latin America, where I think F1 fans might rival US F1 fans in number. I'm unable to embed the video here, but SPEED TV just posted a great 8 minute+ video of the highlights of the press conference. If the full press conference is published, we will share that video with you in the future. For now, you can watch the SPEED TV video of this F1 USGP April Press Conference by clicking here.

McCombs then invited Steve Sexton, F1US and now COTA President, to the stage and Steve also shared Varsha's sentiments of the warm welcome he has received as a new Austin resident. Then the discussion transitioned from the "Who" to the "What and Where." This is not just a race track, folks. The Circuit of the Americas is a destination: a high-end, multi-purpose development that has grown from 970 acres to 1,100 planned acres. Tavo began to paint a clearer picture of what we can expect at the Citcuit of the Americas:

• 40,000 square foot, 3-story tall conference center bordering the 300 yard pit area
• 14 executive suites, each 3,600 square feet with elevators, kitchens, latest A/V gear, high-speed connections and capacity for 75 people each (to be used by teams and sponsors on race weekends for meetings and hospitality)
• Main grandstand includes luxury suites for business entertaining and capacity of about 750, including commercial kitchen and cafe
• Media and conference center - business conferences, seminars and receptions, and converting to international media center
• 500-person banquet hall (private or corporate dinners and nonprofit fundraising galas)
• 5,400 square foot Medical Building with year-round use as a training facility (professionals and students) and converting to trauma care center for driver-athletes
• Live music entertainment venue during race and non-race weekends, including indoor and outdoor space, and spanning the equivilent of 3 football fields wide with a capacity of 35,000
• 22-story Observation Deck providing breath-taking and memorable views of the destination set amidst the gorgeous Texas Hill Country
• Entertainment and festival venue with capacity of 35,000

This article, "Circuit of the Americas Partners with Texas Schools," is a great overview of the educational institutions that have jumped on board with COTA and their specific roles "linking classroom learning to practical application work." We are really hoping to hear that Austin's own University of Texas at Austin and Texas State University-San Marcos are also jumping on board!

Tavo continued to highlight the business and economic impact of the facility not only during this fast-paced construction phase that we are currently in, but also the sustained opportunities for local and global companies for the duration of the 10-year contract with Formula One Management and F1 racing:

• Agreement with Austin Energy to build a new energy sub-station in Del Valle
• Research and development opportunities almost solidified with two large auto manufacturers
• Potentially 1300-employees tied to the multi-purpose facility
• Construction expenditures alone of over $400MM, with a focus to keep 80% or more of that in the pockets of local Texan businesses
• In addition to plans for on-site retail, the COTA team is in talks to bring a major hotel developer to the development
• In the course of a single F1 race weekend (which, as we know, is only 3-5 nights out of the facility's 365 days of planned business), you can expect 300,000 guests to spend 3-5 nights in the Austin and surrounding Central Texas areas and spending an average of $1400-1600

Tavo then shifted the focus back to the "Who and What" by introducing two icons in an equally exciting motorsport field: 1993 World GP Motorcycle Champion Kevin Schwantz and 2010 MotoGP "Rookie of the Year" Ben Spies. Schwantz made the highly-anticipated announcement of the addition of MotoGP motorcycle racing to the circuit's lineup. MotoGP is to the world of motorcycle racing what Formula One is to the world of automotive racing: they are both the cream of the crop in their respective fields; partnering the highest advancements in technology and innovation to deliver non-stop excitement to their large international audiences. The introduction of MotoGP's partnership with The Circuit of The Americas facility was met with energetic support from the crowd as Schwantz also reported a 10-year agreement was met to bring MotoGP to Texas from 2013-2022.

While I was live-tweeting snippits of the press conference via our Twitter feed, I heard Schwantz ask Spies "How excited are you to be able to come and race in Austin in 2013?" His response was "Very!" and I think you can expect to see an expansion of our COME AND RACE IT© product line to show our support of MotoGP's introduction to the Texas lineup.

As the press conference wrapped up and we were directed to make our way to the shuttles leaving for the construction tour of the facility, we snagged two great interviews with Bob Varsha of SPEED TV and Christian Epp of Tilke Engineering. You can enjoy them on our dedicated Press Conference page or via our Vimeo Channel.

For all high-def photos and official facility renderings, check out our Gallery.

Next up from us: our recap of the site tour, and hopefully next up from COTA: the "When" and more announcements on the "Who" regarding this decelopment of epic, Texas-sized proporstions.

In the meantime, tell us what you thought of the Press Conference and enjoy the first-ever video of the drive up Turn 1 at The Circuit of The Americas!

On Location at the Circuit Of The Americas from The Austin Grand Prix on Vimeo.